Everything about the Admiral District home of Ted and Nancy Hadley signals the presence of children - lots of children.

From the oversize van parked out front to the half-dozen bicycles blanketing the lawn to the happy juvenile chatter resonating through the walls, the Hadley's place is kid territory.

In fact, no fewer than six kids between the ages of 5 and 12 share the house with Ted and Nancy. But while theirs looks like an old-fashioned large American family, there's nothing old-fashioned about the way they assembled it.

The Hadleys always wanted to be parents, but they knew they couldn't have biological children. However, they also knew that thousands of kids around the world already needed parents - so they chose adoption. "There are just too many children out there, who through no fault of their own, are missing out on that central part of their childhood," says Ted.

To help them find the children they longed for, the Hadleys turned to World Association for Children and Parents, a Renton-based adoption agency.

"We believe every child is born with a right to grow up in a loving and permanent family," says World Association agency spokesperson Kristine Leander. "From our point of view, the kids are our clients, and it's our duty to find parents for them."

In 2002, just over a year after they applied to the agency, the Hadleys made their first trip to the Russian orphanage where their future sons Sascha, 2, and Andrei, 3, were waiting. But in contrast with the joy of welcoming the boys to their family, Ted and Nancy also came face-to-face with dozens of other needy children in the orphanage. They saw desperation in the eyes of the kids who waved goodbye to Andrei and Sascha.

Seven months after bringing the boys home, the Hadleys applied to adopt more Russian children, four more to be exact: Oksana, 4, Dmitry, 5, Julia, 6, and Nina, 10, a sibling group. When they joined their new brothers in August 2003, the Hadleys finally had the large family they'd dreamed of.

Instead of six separate pregnancies, it took them only twice through the adoption process.

"That is one of the benefits of adopting sibling groups and it took about the same time to adopt children as it does to bring a child through a full-term pregnancy," says Ted.

Furthermore, they'd met the children's need for parents while preserving their existing sibling relationships.

The topic of adoption always raises a number of delicate questions. Cost is one, especially when this many children are involved. But adoption can be surprisingly affordable, as the Hadleys discovered. For starters, they received a federal adoption tax credit of more than $10,000 for each child.

"While we did have to fund the adoption and our travel out of pocket, over time all of that money was refunded to us," Ted says. "As it turns out, that is a very good thing because raising six children can be kind of expensive."

Furthermore, because sibling groups are considered "waiting children," the Hadleys were eligible to receive a subsidy through the World Association's Family Finders Program to help with their fees.

The Hadleys also got help from the West Seattle community. Neighbors and business owners followed the "it takes a village" model and pitched in to help. A customer at Husky Deli heard about the Hadley's kids from deli owner Jack Miller - and gave them boxes of children's clothing .

"It made me proud to live here," said Ted.

The children have all been home with Ted and Nancy for at least two years, and they've assimilated into their new family and community with flying colors. They attend West Seattle public schools, where their parents are quick to credit all of the children's teachers for their help. After-school soccer and other programs help them stay active and make friends. At home, all of the children seem to have merged successfully, and the parents endeavor to foster cooperation, respect and individuality.

"Raising six children certainly isn't an easy job, but if you look at the benefits versus the challenges, I think we're coming out ahead," says Ted. "I don't think it's that different from raising biological children. The most important ingredient in a family is not genes - it's love."

November is National Adoption Month, and National Adoption Day will be celebrated on Friday, Nov. 18, at 11 a.m., with a ceremony at the King County Courthouse. The event features a celebrity guest speaker, and county judges will simultaneously finalize dozens of adoptions for local families. For more information, contact Dean Lum at 206-296-9295 or dean.lum@metrokc.gov. Additional information at www.nationaladoptionday.org. To learn about children who need adoptive parents, visit www.wacap.org.

Debbie Sweetland is a West Seattle resident and a recruitment specialist for World Association for Children and Parents. She can be reached at 575-4550.